/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/iagree.gif too, Sammy. The Cisitalia certainly shows where the XK-120 and early Ferraris got many of their styling cues. But even the Cisitalia has styling features taken from some pre-war Italian, French, and German cars.
The most interesting styling feature on the Olds was the long. pointed tail lights that are so similar to the C-1 Corvettes' that you wonder how it can be considered "unique" in any way. As I mentioned in another thread, I think the $3 mill price was just a man with too much money who was determined to have that car, no matter the cost. And, during the auction, it looked like the man bidding against him knew that and jacked up the price just for spite, knowing he was not going to win it! My wife and I even discussed that possibility when the bidding was nearing $1 million and the winner was getting in the other bidder's face and sitting down in the car's passenger seat.
Personally, I would not drive nearly as far out of my way to visit a museum literally in the middle of nowhere to view a '54 Oldsmobile as I would for a Mako Shark concept car, a mid-engined, two-seater Mustang concept car, or a Chrysler turbine car. Or, come to think of it, for a production 427 Cobra, Ferrari GTO, or D-Type Jag with a racing history. I guess I must be more a child of the '60s than the '50s, even though I grew up in the '50s and all my first cars were from the '50s.
Just imagine the car collections that each of us could acquire with $3,000,000! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif